"Well I’ve been huddled up alone
By the fire even though
I’m not exactly feeling cold" - He's by the "fire", trying to mend his broken heart. But it's not broken really (this relationship wan't gonna work).
"And I’ve been bundled up for days
Too confused to be amazed
At all the icy water in my veins" - The ice is melting & he's wondering why. Surely he should be really, really heartbroken? (throughout the song, keep thinking about Adam's meaning & it should all come together, line-by-line) (- this is the line I struggle with the most)
"Why do I feel so alone?" - he's single now. of course he feels lonely. just not as lonely as he should be, if it was a functional relationship in the first place
"Yeah I’ve been moving in and out
Of this old split-level house
And I’d just as soon burn the whole place down"
"‘Cause I quit working lumberyards
To build a mansion out of cards
But I feel thin behind these paper walls"- He moved from something safe, to something risky and uncertain. Think about a paper house. You know it's gonna fall. He knew it was gonna fall, but wasn't uncertain. If you're a lumberjack, you're the one who's in control. So, he used to know what he was doing. Also, trees are thicker than cards, right? (Perhaps he had a more stable relationship in the past)
"Why do I feel so alone?" - he keeps asking this. He's at an uncertain point in his life. I think he's a bit confused.
"‘Cause the angriest bark is always worse than the bite
Like the ache in my chest that my heart didn’t invite
But if the prettiest romance isn’t perfectly right
That makes every love lost just a holiday every night" What Adam said (at the top of my comment). If even the best relationships have problems, then there's bound to be a lot of hartbreak in the world. And, in the wider scope of things, it's not as big a deal as it might seem.
"Well I’ve been painting through the night
In the basement out of sight
Brushing paper tigers black and white" - Making things clearer for himself, shutting himself out & not letting anything else get in the way. The basement is the darkest, deepest part of the house. So, he's learning from these dark, unhappy experiences to make everything clearer*. The "Paper Tigers" are his ruined relationship (from google: Paper Tiger= A person or thing that appears threatening but is ineffectual.) So, he's going from this dark place to [see next line]:
"‘Cause come tomorrow afternoon
I’ll fill a helium balloon
And set them free into the baby blue sky
So they won’t have to be alone" -Setting his Paper Tigers free. Skies & the colour blue always represent something good (whether that's chasing/living your dream, or being in a relationship or whatever). He's letting go.
He keeps repeating "Just a holiday every night" - he keeps telling himself this. Reassuring himself this but...
"But when I close these heavy lids after dark
Each sweet dream is a target
And all my shots are so consistently wide of the mark" - Nightmares. (Even though he knows this is just a Paper Tiger, he still gets them no matter how much he reassures himself or tries.)
"Well I’ve been huddled up alone
By the fire even though
I’m not exactly feeling cold
But how my heartache hit the trail
When a paper tiger tail
Fluttered down, I guess I’ll never know" - I love this bit!! It shows him reverting back to the beginning. The same lyrics AND He uses a higher voice at the end. It's the kind of voice he used in his earlier songs. (Maybe it shows naivety?..or maybe he just did it to make the song sound nicer idk) But, with the rest of this song, he sings with an air of authority & experience. Like, he's been through it. It's kind of an advice song. I think he's saying that at the end of the day, none of it can be explained. You can try making things clear (painting the paper tigers black & white) and try to get rid of your problems (balloon). The tail falling is a bit like the nightmares coming back. But, there's nothing you can do right now, you have to live with it. But, it's really not as bad as it seems. He's basically gone round in a big circle.
[*Also, maybe the basement thing links into his songwriting roots? Maybe he made things clearer & felt better through his music. But, I'm not too sure. I personally like the idea of Adam Young's music being fiction. It gives his songs better meanings & more weight & more room for the imagination. Maybe he just interpreted ideas from real life into this song.]
But, this is all my interpretation. It could be very different to yours (or Adam's!)
Maybe I'm looking to far into it. I'm not sure. Some people don't like to read too far into these songs. But, this is how I see the song :)
@melinafiol actually, for the last bit, Adam doesn’t use a “higher voice”, he just doesn’t force the singing out as much. He doesn’t sing any higher he just uses a softer tone, if you will :)
@melinafiol actually, for the last bit, Adam doesn’t use a “higher voice”, he just doesn’t force the singing out as much. He doesn’t sing any higher he just uses a softer tone, if you will :)
Adam Young said here: http://heyheyanna.tumblr.com/post/29803605060/paper-tigers : "It means that when you first realize you’re not meant to be with somebody, it’s not the end of the world."
So:
"Well I’ve been huddled up alone By the fire even though I’m not exactly feeling cold" - He's by the "fire", trying to mend his broken heart. But it's not broken really (this relationship wan't gonna work).
"And I’ve been bundled up for days Too confused to be amazed At all the icy water in my veins" - The ice is melting & he's wondering why. Surely he should be really, really heartbroken? (throughout the song, keep thinking about Adam's meaning & it should all come together, line-by-line) (- this is the line I struggle with the most)
"Why do I feel so alone?" - he's single now. of course he feels lonely. just not as lonely as he should be, if it was a functional relationship in the first place
"Yeah I’ve been moving in and out Of this old split-level house And I’d just as soon burn the whole place down"
"‘Cause I quit working lumberyards To build a mansion out of cards But I feel thin behind these paper walls"- He moved from something safe, to something risky and uncertain. Think about a paper house. You know it's gonna fall. He knew it was gonna fall, but wasn't uncertain. If you're a lumberjack, you're the one who's in control. So, he used to know what he was doing. Also, trees are thicker than cards, right? (Perhaps he had a more stable relationship in the past)
"Why do I feel so alone?" - he keeps asking this. He's at an uncertain point in his life. I think he's a bit confused.
"‘Cause the angriest bark is always worse than the bite Like the ache in my chest that my heart didn’t invite But if the prettiest romance isn’t perfectly right That makes every love lost just a holiday every night" What Adam said (at the top of my comment). If even the best relationships have problems, then there's bound to be a lot of hartbreak in the world. And, in the wider scope of things, it's not as big a deal as it might seem.
"Well I’ve been painting through the night In the basement out of sight Brushing paper tigers black and white" - Making things clearer for himself, shutting himself out & not letting anything else get in the way. The basement is the darkest, deepest part of the house. So, he's learning from these dark, unhappy experiences to make everything clearer*. The "Paper Tigers" are his ruined relationship (from google: Paper Tiger= A person or thing that appears threatening but is ineffectual.) So, he's going from this dark place to [see next line]:
"‘Cause come tomorrow afternoon I’ll fill a helium balloon And set them free into the baby blue sky So they won’t have to be alone" -Setting his Paper Tigers free. Skies & the colour blue always represent something good (whether that's chasing/living your dream, or being in a relationship or whatever). He's letting go.
He keeps repeating "Just a holiday every night" - he keeps telling himself this. Reassuring himself this but...
"But when I close these heavy lids after dark Each sweet dream is a target And all my shots are so consistently wide of the mark" - Nightmares. (Even though he knows this is just a Paper Tiger, he still gets them no matter how much he reassures himself or tries.)
"Well I’ve been huddled up alone By the fire even though I’m not exactly feeling cold But how my heartache hit the trail When a paper tiger tail Fluttered down, I guess I’ll never know" - I love this bit!! It shows him reverting back to the beginning. The same lyrics AND He uses a higher voice at the end. It's the kind of voice he used in his earlier songs. (Maybe it shows naivety?..or maybe he just did it to make the song sound nicer idk) But, with the rest of this song, he sings with an air of authority & experience. Like, he's been through it. It's kind of an advice song. I think he's saying that at the end of the day, none of it can be explained. You can try making things clear (painting the paper tigers black & white) and try to get rid of your problems (balloon). The tail falling is a bit like the nightmares coming back. But, there's nothing you can do right now, you have to live with it. But, it's really not as bad as it seems. He's basically gone round in a big circle.
[*Also, maybe the basement thing links into his songwriting roots? Maybe he made things clearer & felt better through his music. But, I'm not too sure. I personally like the idea of Adam Young's music being fiction. It gives his songs better meanings & more weight & more room for the imagination. Maybe he just interpreted ideas from real life into this song.]
But, this is all my interpretation. It could be very different to yours (or Adam's!) Maybe I'm looking to far into it. I'm not sure. Some people don't like to read too far into these songs. But, this is how I see the song :)
@melinafiol actually, for the last bit, Adam doesn’t use a “higher voice”, he just doesn’t force the singing out as much. He doesn’t sing any higher he just uses a softer tone, if you will :)
@melinafiol actually, for the last bit, Adam doesn’t use a “higher voice”, he just doesn’t force the singing out as much. He doesn’t sing any higher he just uses a softer tone, if you will :)